DE Turf touts 2017 economic impact

Thursday

Officials from the DE Turf Sports Complex released data Feb. 7 showing the economic impact of the facility on Kent County during its first year in operation and announced its 2018 tournament season.

Executive Director Chris Giacomucci and board Chairman Bill Strickland told the Greater Kent Committee the facility welcomed more than 40,000 visitors in 2017, people who also spent money at local hotels, restaurants and other Kent County businesses. More than 900 teams from 22 states and Canada attended events at the complex in 2017. In Kent County, teams booked 2,845 hotel rooms across 23 hotel properties, resulting in $333,189 in hotel revenue. DE Turf is expected to add $18 million to Central Delaware’s economy on an annual basis.

In 2018, the complex will host 50 events across different youth and amateur sports including soccer, field hockey, lacrosse, ultimate Frisbee, seven-on-seven football and 5K races. Twenty major events were held at the DE Turf Sports Complex in 2017.

The 2018 tournament lineup will feature the 2018 US Lacrosse Youth Nationals, to be held Aug. 2-5, which is expected to attract over 90 teams and thousands of out-of-state visitors to Kent County. The National Lacrosse Classic will also be held at DE Turf on July 16-19 and will feature more than 2,500 athletes.

Speaking to the Greater Kent Committee, Giacomucci also announced the dates for the 2018 Mid-Atlantic Tournament Series, which is a series of home-grown youth soccer tournaments held throughout the calendar year at the facility. They will be hosted in partnership with the Coastal Atlantic Futbol Club, a youth soccer club that trains at the facility.

DE Turf will also host high school play days open to schools across the state.